Alabama Football: Bear Bryant Predicted That Big Money Would Force Playoff

The legend of former Alabama head coach Paul "Bear" Bryant is second-to-none in SEC circles. Bryant led the Crimson Tide to its most prosperous era, and his impact on the Crimson Tide program is still felt to this day.

Add another point to his resume: Fortune-teller.

On Jan. 30, 1980, the Associated Press ran a story with quote from Bryant stating that money would eventually lead to a playoff in college football (h/t bamahammer.com via the Kingman Daily Miner)

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The big thing is exposure. They'd be coming to our house once in a while instead of to the Super Bowl. But someday, it will come down to money, and when it does, we'll win over the academic people.

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Sure enough, he was right.

Television contracts have grown at an astronomical rate, and the money generated from those contracts are one of the primary reasons that the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) will likely have a four-team playoff beginning after the 2014 season.

Bryant's quotes weren't much different than the arguments that playoff proponents have been using in the modern era. He brushed off the argument that a playoff would force football players to miss too many classes by comparing it to the time that players in other sports miss.

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Football players don't really miss many classes. For instance, we leave for a game on Friday night and come back on Saturday night. Basketball and baseball players are the worst; they miss more classes than anyone.

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It is interesting to see that, even back in 1980, the playoff debate was a big part of college football, and that Bear Bryant used many of the same arguments that are still used today.

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